Biyografi
Andre Morgan is a globally acclaimed film and television producer.
Born in a French military hospital in Rabat, Morocco, while his father served in the U.S. Navy, Morgan attended numerous schools across Europe, England, and the United States due to his father's frequent relocations. In 1963, his family settled in Overland Park, Kansas.
Morgan pursued a triple major in Chinese History, Asian Studies, and Mandarin at the University of Kansas. In June 1972, shortly after President Nixon's historic opening to China, he moved to Hong Kong for a one-year internship at Golden Harvest, a young film company founded by Raymond Chow.
At Golden Harvest, Morgan quickly advanced from intern to assistant marketing manager, vice president of international operations, producer, and ultimately partner and CEO. Beginning with classics like Way of the Dragon and Enter the Dragon, his strategic vision helped elevate the studio onto the global stage over twelve years. He expanded the company's reach beyond Hong Kong and Chinese-speaking markets by establishing offices in Los Angeles, London, and Mexico City, and orchestrated acquisitions of several cinema chains. In 1978, he facilitated the purchase of Pan Asia Films and formed a key trilateral distribution alliance with Japan's Toho-Towa and the Cathay Organization, dominating Pan-Asian film distribution. Alongside Raymond Chow, Morgan played a pivotal role in launching the international careers of Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, John Woo, and other Hong Kong cinema legends.
After demonstrating his talent for building an international enterprise, Morgan sold his stake in Golden Harvest in 1984 to focus on Hollywood. Partnering with Albert S. Ruddy, producer of The Godfather, he co-founded the Ruddy Morgan Organization (RMO). Together, they developed RMO into the longest-running and most successful independent production company in entertainment, producing over 40 films and 400 hours of television. Notable successes include Million Dollar Baby (Academy Award Best Picture), The Cannonball Run, Martial Law, and Walker: Texas Ranger.
Morgan also managed various talents for RMO, influencing the careers of Hong Kong filmmakers such as Peter Chan, Sammo Hung, Stanley Tong, and Academy Award-winning cinematographer Dean Semler (Dances With Wolves, Apocalypto), among others.
Invited by the Chinese government to expand RMO's global presence, Morgan returned to China in 2000. He was instrumental in establishing Hweilai Studios in Shanghai, China's first private-sector studio, which opened in 2001. Offering state-of-the-art production and post-production facilities comparable to Hollywood, Hweilai became a center for premier Chinese productions as well as English-language films and television shot in Shanghai.
Since launching RMO in China in 1999, Morgan has achieved several milestones. In 2002, he executive produced Flatland, the first Sino-American television series. In 2005, he executive produced the first Sino-American film co-production, Merchant Ivory's The White Countess, starring Ralph Fiennes and Vanessa Redgrave. His production of Peter Chan's Perhaps Love, the first Chinese musical in 25 years, was Hong Kong's 2006 Oscar entry and won 22 international awards, including six Hong Kong Film Awards. In 2007, The Warlords, featuring Jet Li, Andy Lau, and Takeshi Kaneshiro, earned 17 awards and 19 nominations, including Best Picture at the Hong Kong Film Awards. He has also produced multiple television series in China.
Currently, Morgan divides his time between the U.S. and Asia, maintaining an active role in the rapidly evolving Pacific Rim markets. He frequently appears as a panelist and guest speaker at media and business events. Morgan serves on the Advisory Board of the Asia World Film Festival and is Vice-Chairman of the Chinese-American Film Festival, which he co-founded in 2005. He is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the Writers Guild of America.
He is a founding partner of Siren Films Ltd. in Shanghai and Morgan & Chan Films in Hong Kong. In Los Angeles, he is CEO of Windsong Pictures. Morgan currently has several projects underway, including relaunching Cannonball Run with Warner Bros., producing Doolittle with Perfect Village (formerly Village Roadshow), as well as developing Genghis Khan, Point Thunder, and others.
His most recent film, Reborn, was released in theaters across China in August 2018.
